Andrew Jackson Returns

Andrew Jackson’s spirit was first seen in the White House in 1865, twenty years after his death. Lady Mary Todd Lincoln heard Jackson in his former bedroom—the Rose Room.

Mrs. Lincoln told others she heard Jackson “stomping about” near his old canopied bed. She also mentioned she heard “cussing” as he stormed about the room.

Andrew Jackson

Her descriptions of the former president matched his personality while he was alive. He was known to hold grudges and settle scores—he participated in several duels.

After Mrs. Lincoln’s encounters Jackson’s ghost remained dormant for years.

In the 1950s, a White House maid and seamstress, Lillian Rogers Parks, also had encounters with Jackson’s ghost. Parks worked in the White House for 30 years—succeeding her mother, who worked through many administrations.

At the time of Park’s encounter, the Rose Room had the reputation as being the most haunted room in the White House. There had been frequent reports of cold spots, and several people had reported hearing laughter near Jackson’s bed.

Lillian Rogers Parks

One day as Parks sat in a chair near this bed alone, she felt someone was watching her. She felt a presence looking over her shoulder as she mended the hem of a bedspread.

It scared her so much, Parker who walked with crutches, because she had Polio as a child, almost left the room without them.

In a book, she wrote entitled, My Thirty Years at the White House she described what she felt.

“I remember when I was working at the bed in the Rose Room... .as I hemmed a bedspread, I suddenly felt that someone was looking at me. I felt something coldish behind me . . . I didn’t finish the spread until three years later.”

During the time Park’s mother worked in the White House, a maid by the name of Katurah Brooks, was busy doing chores when she heard laughter in the Rose Room. She stated the sound had a “hollow” or “otherworldly” quality.

The most recent appearance of Jackson’s ghost occurred in 1964. An aide that worked in the Lyndon Johnson administration reported hearing expletives and shouting in the Rose Room. He believed it was Jackson’s ghost.

The Rose Room

Jackson’s ghost sticks to the Rose Room, where he spent his personal time during his two terms as president. Some believe Jackson’s appearances, even though they are years apart, have several things in common.

He appears at times of war, and when he has an affinity with the president in office.

When Mrs. Lincoln heard him in the Rose Room, it was during the Civil War, and he had something in common with her husband—he grew up in a log cabin.

When his spirit returned in the 1950s, President Dwight Eisenhower held the office. Like Jackson, Eisenhower was a war hero and general.

Jackson’s most recent appearance was during the Vietnam War. He appears to be drawn back by troubled times.

Before Andrew Jackson became president, he encountered The Bell Witch. A post about this is here.